Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all the foreigners, and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. Those of Israelite descentThis phrase emphasizes the identity and heritage of the people involved. The Israelites were the chosen people of God, descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In the Hebrew context, the term "Israelite" signifies a covenant relationship with Yahweh. This separation underscores their unique calling and responsibility to uphold the laws and commandments given to them. Historically, this identity was crucial in maintaining the purity of worship and adherence to God's statutes, especially after the Babylonian exile when cultural and religious assimilation was a significant threat. separated themselves
The act of separation here is both physical and spiritual. The Hebrew root for "separated" is "badal," which means to divide or distinguish. This action reflects a conscious decision to live according to God's standards, distinct from the surrounding nations. In a historical context, this separation was necessary to preserve the integrity of their faith and practices. Spiritually, it symbolizes repentance and a return to holiness, aligning with the biblical principle of being "set apart" for God's purposes. from all the foreigners
This phrase indicates a clear demarcation between the Israelites and the non-Israelites. The term "foreigners" refers to those who did not share in the covenant relationship with Yahweh. In the post-exilic period, intermarriage and cultural blending posed significant challenges to maintaining religious purity. By separating from foreigners, the Israelites were reaffirming their commitment to God's laws and rejecting influences that could lead them astray from their faith. and they stood
The act of standing is significant in biblical terms, often associated with taking a position or making a declaration. In this context, standing represents readiness and resolve to confess and repent. It is a posture of respect and attentiveness before God, indicating the seriousness of their actions. Historically, standing during prayer or confession was a common practice, symbolizing the community's collective acknowledgment of their sins and their desire to seek God's forgiveness. and confessed their sins
Confession is a critical component of repentance and restoration in the biblical narrative. The Hebrew word for "confess" is "yadah," which means to acknowledge or give thanks. Here, it involves admitting wrongdoing and expressing remorse. This public confession signifies a communal recognition of their failures and a desire to return to God's ways. Scripturally, confession is often the first step towards reconciliation with God, highlighting the importance of humility and honesty in the believer's life. and the iniquities of their fathers
This phrase acknowledges the generational aspect of sin and its consequences. The term "iniquities" refers to moral perversity or guilt. By confessing the sins of their ancestors, the Israelites were recognizing the patterns of disobedience that had led to their exile and suffering. This acknowledgment is crucial for breaking the cycle of sin and seeking a fresh start. Biblically, it reflects the understanding that while individuals are responsible for their actions, the community bears the weight of its collective history, necessitating a comprehensive approach to repentance and renewal. Persons / Places / Events 1. IsraelitesThe descendants of Jacob, also known as Israel, who were God's chosen people. In this context, they are returning exiles in Jerusalem. 2. ForeignersNon-Israelites living among the Israelites. The separation from them signifies a return to covenant faithfulness. 3. Confession of SinsThe act of acknowledging and repenting for personal and ancestral sins, demonstrating humility and a desire for reconciliation with God. 4. JerusalemThe city where these events take place, significant as the spiritual and political center of Israel. 5. The Iniquities of Their FathersRefers to the sins committed by previous generations, acknowledging a collective responsibility and the need for communal repentance. Teaching Points The Importance of SeparationThe Israelites' separation from foreigners symbolizes a commitment to holiness and obedience to God's commands. Believers today are called to be in the world but not of it, maintaining spiritual distinctiveness. Confession and RepentanceConfession is a vital step in restoring our relationship with God. It involves acknowledging personal and communal sins and seeking God's forgiveness and guidance. Generational AccountabilityRecognizing the sins of previous generations can help us understand patterns of disobedience and seek God's help in breaking them. This teaches us the importance of learning from the past to build a faithful future. Community and Unity in FaithThe collective confession of the Israelites underscores the power of community in spiritual growth. Believers are encouraged to support one another in accountability and prayer. Renewal and RestorationThe act of confession leads to spiritual renewal and restoration. It is a reminder that God is always ready to forgive and restore those who earnestly seek Him. Bible Study Questions 1. What does the act of separating from foreigners symbolize for the Israelites, and how can this principle be applied in a modern Christian context? 2. How does the communal confession of sins in Nehemiah 9:2 compare to individual confession, and why is both important in the life of a believer? 3. In what ways can acknowledging the sins of previous generations help us in our spiritual journey today? 4. How can we foster a sense of community and unity in our faith communities, similar to the Israelites in Nehemiah 9? 5. Reflect on a time when confession and repentance led to personal or communal renewal in your life. How can this experience encourage others in their faith journey? Connections to Other Scriptures Ezra 10This chapter also deals with the separation from foreign influences and the confession of sins, showing a parallel in the post-exilic community's efforts to restore purity and obedience to God's law. Leviticus 26Discusses the blessings of obedience and the consequences of disobedience, highlighting the importance of confession and repentance for restoration. Daniel 9Daniel's prayer of confession for his people mirrors the communal confession seen in Nehemiah, emphasizing the importance of intercessory prayer and repentance. People Abram, Amorites, Bani, Bunni, Canaanites, Chenani, Egyptians, Ezra, Girgashite, Girgashites, Hashabniah, Hittites, Hodiah, Hodijah, Israelites, Jebusites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Levites, Og, Perizzites, Pethahiah, Pharaoh, Shebaniah, Sherebiah, SihonPlaces Assyria, Bashan, Egypt, Gate of Ephraim, Heshbon, Mount Sinai, Red Sea, UrTopics Confess, Confessed, Descendants, Descent, Fathers, Foreigners, Forgiveness, Iniquities, Israelites, Nations, Places, Publicly, Requesting, Seed, Separate, Separated, Sins, Sons, Stand, Stood, Stranger, Strangers, Themselves, Wickedness, WrongdoingDictionary of Bible Themes Nehemiah 9:2 8341 separation Nehemiah 9:1-3 6624 confession, of sin
7209 congregation Nehemiah 9:2-3 8627 worship, elements Library The Joy of the Lord is Your Strength. Neh 9:10
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John Newton—Olney HymnsQuestions About the Nature and Perpetuity of the Seventh-Day Sabbath.
AND PROOF, THAT THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK IS THE TRUE CHRISTIAN SABBATH. BY JOHN BUNYAN. 'The Son of man is lord also of the Sabbath day.' London: Printed for Nath, Ponder, at the Peacock in the Poultry, 1685. EDITOR'S ADVERTISEMENT. All our inquiries into divine commands are required to be made personally, solemnly, prayerful. To 'prove all things,' and 'hold fast' and obey 'that which is good,' is a precept, equally binding upon the clown, as it is upon the philosopher. Satisfied from our observations …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Ten Reasons Demonstrating the Commandment of the Sabbath to be Moral.
1. Because all the reasons of this commandment are moral and perpetual; and God has bound us to the obedience of this commandment with more forcible reasons than to any of the rest--First, because he foresaw that irreligious men would either more carelessly neglect, or more boldly break this commandment than any other; secondly, because that in the practice of this commandment the keeping of all the other consists; which makes God so often complain that all his worship is neglected or overthrown, …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety The "Fraternity" of Pharisees
To realise the state of religious society at the time of our Lord, the fact that the Pharisees were a regular "order," and that there were many such "fraternities," in great measure the outcome of the original Pharisees, must always be kept in view. For the New Testament simply transports us among contemporary scenes and actors, taking the then existent state of things, so to speak, for granted. But the fact referred to explains many seemingly strange circumstances, and casts fresh light upon all. …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life Fragrant Spices from the Mountains of Myrrh. "Thou Art all Fair, My Love; There is no Spot in Thee. " --Song of Solomon iv. 7.
FRAGRANT SPICES FROM THE MOUNTAINS OF MYRRH. HOW marvellous are these words! "Thou art all fair, My love; there is no spot in thee." The glorious Bridegroom is charmed with His spouse, and sings soft canticles of admiration. When the bride extols her Lord there is no wonder, for He deserves it well, and in Him there is room for praise without possibility of flattery. But does He who is wiser than Solomon condescend to praise this sunburnt Shulamite? Tis even so, for these are His own words, and were …
Charles Hadden Spurgeon—Till He Come The Personality of the Holy Spirit.
Before one can correctly understand the work of the Holy Spirit, he must first of all know the Spirit Himself. A frequent source of error and fanaticism about the work of the Holy Spirit is the attempt to study and understand His work without first of all coming to know Him as a Person. It is of the highest importance from the standpoint of worship that we decide whether the Holy Spirit is a Divine Person, worthy to receive our adoration, our faith, our love, and our entire surrender to Himself, …
R. A. Torrey—The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit The Early Life of Malachy. Having Been Admitted to Holy Orders He Associates with Malchus
[Sidenote: 1095.] 1. Our Malachy, born in Ireland,[134] of a barbarous people, was brought up there, and there received his education. But from the barbarism of his birth he contracted no taint, any more than the fishes of the sea from their native salt. But how delightful to reflect, that uncultured barbarism should have produced for us so worthy[135] a fellow-citizen with the saints and member of the household of God.[136] He who brings honey out of the rock and oil out of the flinty rock[137] …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh The Prophecy of Obadiah.
We need not enter into details regarding the question as to the time when the prophet wrote. By a thorough argumentation, Caspari has proved, that he occupies his right position in the Canon, and hence belongs to the earliest age of written prophecy, i.e., to the time of Jeroboam II. and Uzziah. As bearing conclusively against those who would assign to him a far later date, viz., the time of the exile, there is not only the indirect testimony borne by the place which this prophecy occupies in …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament The Preface to the Commandments
And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God,' &c. Exod 20: 1, 2. What is the preface to the Ten Commandments? The preface to the Ten Commandments is, I am the Lord thy God.' The preface to the preface is, God spake all these words, saying,' &c. This is like the sounding of a trumpet before a solemn proclamation. Other parts of the Bible are said to be uttered by the mouth of the holy prophets (Luke 1: 70), but here God spake in his own person. How are we to understand that, God spake, …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments Of Immediate Revelation.
Of Immediate Revelation. [29] Seeing no man knoweth the Father but the Son, and he to whom the Son revealeth him; and seeing the revelation of the Son is in and by the Spirit; therefore the testimony of the Spirit is that alone by which the true knowledge of God hath been, is, and can be only revealed; who as, by the moving of his own Spirit, he disposed the chaos of this world into that wonderful order in which it was in the beginning, and created man a living soul, to rule and govern it, so by …
Robert Barclay—Theses Theologicae and An Apology for the True Christian Divinity Influences that Gave Rise to the Priestly Laws and Histories
[Sidenote: Influences in the exile that produced written ceremonial laws] The Babylonian exile gave a great opportunity and incentive to the further development of written law. While the temple stood, the ceremonial rites and customs received constant illustration, and were transmitted directly from father to son in the priestly families. Hence, there was little need of writing them down. But when most of the priests were carried captive to Babylonia, as in 597 B.C., and ten years later the temple …
Charles Foster Kent—The Origin & Permanent Value of the Old Testament The Holy War,
MADE BY SHADDAI UPON DIABOLUS, FOR THE REGAINING OF THE METROPOLIS OF THE WORLD; OR, THE LOSING AND TAKING AGAIN OF THE TOWN OF MANSOUL. THE AUTHOR OF 'THE PILGRIM'S PROGRESS.' 'I have used similitudes.'--Hosea 12:10. London: Printed for Dorman Newman, at the King's Arms in the Poultry; and Benjamin Alsop, at the Angel and Bible in the Poultry, 1682. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. Bunyan's account of the Holy War is indeed an extraordinary book, manifesting a degree of genius, research, and spiritual …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Ezra-Nehemiah
Some of the most complicated problems in Hebrew history as well as in the literary criticism of the Old Testament gather about the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. Apart from these books, all that we know of the origin and early history of Judaism is inferential. They are our only historical sources for that period; and if in them we have, as we seem to have, authentic memoirs, fragmentary though they be, written by the two men who, more than any other, gave permanent shape and direction to Judaism, then …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Nehemiah 9:2 NIVNehemiah 9:2 NLTNehemiah 9:2 ESVNehemiah 9:2 NASBNehemiah 9:2 KJV
Nehemiah 9:2 Commentaries
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